Module 1 Objectives
At the end of the session, participants will have an
understanding of:
•The current facts about accrued annual leave in Australia
•The impact of the issue on both employers and
employees
•The types of employees who are typical ‘stockpilers’
•Why staff stockpile their annual leave
•The benefits of regularly taking annual leave
•Leave liability within your company/organisation
The Facts
Annual leave accrual affects all
businesses across all industries
Annual leave accrued by Australian
full-time employees:
129 million days
$33.3 billion in wages
Source: Roy Morgan Single Source September 2011
The Facts
1 in 4 Australian full-time
employees have 25+ days of
accrued annual leave; and
1 in 3 have 20+ days
Leave Stockpilers are most likely to
be:
• Male and older
• Longer serving employees who
typically manage staff
• Parents of school aged or
older children
• Empty nesters
Source: Roy Morgan Single Source December 2008
The Facts
Annual leave is often:
• Not seen as a critical problem
• Only reported annually
• Put into the ‘too hard basket’
• Perceived as the employees
issue not an organisational one
• Seen to be ‘harder than it used
to be’ to plan and take:
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–
–
No quiet time of year
More competition
Expectations raised for
individuals
Impact - Employers
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Financial liability
Productivity
OH&S issues
Inhibits internal transfers
Staff retention
Adverse organisational
reputation
Potential increase in sick leave
Impact - Employees
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Adverse impact on health and
well-being affecting productivity
‘Burn-out’
Job satisfaction
Absenteeism
Commitment and morale
Workplace Barriers
57% of stockpilers consider work related
barriers prevent them from taking leave:
• Workload before and after leave (30%)
• Lack of resources for cover (26%)
• Difficulty of scheduling leave when
desired (21%) or around projects (21%)
• Other concerns:
– Meeting targets
– Job security
– Company culture
– Management support
Source: Jones Donald Strategy Partners March 2009
Personal Barriers
•
80% of stockpilers cite personal
barriers to leave taking
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–
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•
Availability of funds (40%)
Fitting around partner’s availability (28%)
Deliberate accrual for emergencies
(26%) or for a big trip (24%)
Other concerns:
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–
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Family commitments
Not a priority at the moment
Time taken to plan a holiday
Source: Jones Donald Strategy Partners March 2009
Additional Barriers
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Fear of redundancy
Fear of change
Don’t want to ‘rock the boat’
Desire to demonstrate value
Increased workloads
Leave seen as ‘Insurance
Policy’
Reduced workforce and
recruitment freezes
Source: Jones Donald Strategy Partners March 2009
Why do people stockpile leave?
Golden Goal
“The big trip/break”
Martyr
“No one else could do it”
Insurance Policy
“My security blanket,
just in case”
Workaholic
“I love my job”
Victim
“They make it impossible”
Employer Benefits
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Reduced financial liability
Risk management
OH&S
Increased productivity
Staff retention/employer of
choice
Increased morale
Workforce planning
Economy
Employee Benefits
•
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Physical and mental well-being
Avoid burnout
Job satisfaction
Reconnection and relationships
Relaxation
New experiences
Seize the moment
Discussion Topic: Our Workplace
This slide can be tailored to questions specific to your
organisation. Suggestions include:
• What do you feel is our work culture to taking annual leave?
Do we encourage it? Is it seen as ‘too difficult’?
• Hold up a mirror! Do we demonstrate leadership in this space
as managers?
• Do you review/know your staff leave balances? Do you know
your own leave balance?
• Have you thought of the impact of leave stockpiling? On our
bottom line – financially in terms of productivity and its impact on
staff.
Discussion Topic: Our Workplace
This slide should be tailored to specifically reflect your
organisation's data
Why is this program so important?
• Our current annual leave liability is X days or X dollars
• X% of our staff have <10 days of accrued leave
• X% of our staff have 11-20 days of accrued leave
• X% of our staff have 21-30 days of accrued leave
• X% of our staff have 31+ days of accrued leave
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